The Chunin Exams: What Might Have Been
by KimichiRamen
Summary: Just different prelims fights. Fight pairings and winners were randomly chosen.
1. The Preliminaries

Mitarashi Anko spread her arms, "Congratulations to you all on passing the second exam! Now Lord Hokage himself will explain about the first exam. Listen up and take every word he says to heart!"

The Lord Hokage commenced to make a long speech explaining the nature of the underlying purpose of the chunin selection exam.

Halfway through the Hokage's speech, Gekko Hayate, the proctor of the third section of the chunin exam appeared and asked to take over the proceedings. He explained that the prospective chunin were no longer to be tested as a team cell, and could easily be fighting their own teammates in the no-holds-barred combat tournament that was the preliminaries.

Presently, a large scoreboard dropped from the ceiling. Hayate coughed and said, "Ummmm...At the start of every round, we will display the names of the two combatants competing in that match. So ummm... Not to hurry you all to the slaughter, but let's begin. We'll now announce the names of the first two contestants.


	2. The First Battle

The applicants of the exam drew a collective breath as the letters on the board jumbled and flashed. They gasped as one as the names were displayed.

Yamanaka Ino whimpered and struggled to hold back a cry, "I'm no match for him! I'll be crushed!" Ino whimpered again.

Shikamaru swore under his breath as he continued to stare at the board, which now read: Yamanaka Ino vs. Gaara. "Crap! That guy'll destroy her!"

Hayate coughed and called, "Could the contestants please step to the center of the battlefield?"

Ino sobbed as she stepped tentatively towards Gaara, the fearsome Sand genin with renowned might and intensity.

"Well then..." Hayate coughed again, "Ummm...Let's begin!"

Ino grabbed a fistful of shuriken and hurled them at Gaara. To her surprise, the projectiles were blocked by a wall of sand! Angrily, she threw another kunai, which was blocked as well. Then the young kunoichi noticed that after the sand formed a wall, it just dropped to the floor. Smiling grimly, Ino formulated a plan.

Dashing to the right, Ino aimed two more shuriken at the sand genin's legs. Then, speeding to the left, she hurled five more, a few seconds apart at his legs again. Dashing behind Gaara, she aimed another volley at the behinds of his knees. All of her assaults were blocked with sand. Ino allowed herself a sinister chuckle.

Shikamaru groaned, "That idiot! What a pain! Even if her weapons weren't blocked, what good would cutting up the creep's legs do!"

Gaara was of the same mind as he snorted, "You might as well give up! I don't even have to turn to face your attacks! You don't stand a chance, weakling!"

Ino's response was to hop backwards, throwing kunai every two feet until she was a fair distance away, which Gaara blocked with further and further extended walls of sand, presumably infuriating his opponent by not allowing her attacks to even get close.

Ino eyed her handiwork with a smirk, looking triumphantly at a steady trail of sand between her and Gaara, ending in a ring around his feet!

Ino fell to her knees and planted her hands on the sand. Coursing her chakra through the granules, she laughed at Gaara, "Why don't you step forwards and attack me? Are you a coward?"

Gaara sneered and made to step towards his opponent. His eyes widened when the sand genin realised that he was rendered immobile! "What have you done!" he demanded.

Ino laughed again and made a hand sign, "I'll force your lips to say 'I give up!'" she cried, "Shintenshin no jutsu! Mind Transfer Technique!"

Ino's body slumped to the floor as her soul was projected into Gaara's trapped body. Gaara/Ino smirked as s/he called to Gekko Hayate, "Sir, I wish to..."

Suddenly, there was a shrill shriek as Ino's soul returned to her body, which suddenly became riddled with deep scores and gouges. "What WAS that thing?" she screamed. Then, with another shriek, she found her body ensnared in sand.

"Sabakukyu!" Gaara bellowed, "The Coffin of Crushing Sand!"

There were muffled cries from within the sand as blood seeped ominously from the spaces between the granules and dripped to the floor.

Gekko Hayate gasped, "Halt!" he cried and watched Ino's mutilated body fall to the floor, "Emergency Unit! Hurry!" Four ninja clad in white hurried in and bore Ino off on a stretcher. Hayate coughed, "As his opponent is unable to do further battle, Gaara is the winner! Please direct your attention to the scoreboard for the contestants of the next bout!"

Sarutobi Asuma shuddered, "What is it that dwells in his psyche that is so powerful it can inflict physical injuries by attacking her soul! What IS he?" Then he glanced at the scoreboard and smirked at Maito Gai, "Well...THIS will be interesting!"


	3. The Second Battle

Maito Gai laughed out loud as he read the electronic scoreboard. It read: Zaku Abumi vs. Hyuga Neji, "Ha! That second-rate otonin doesn't stand a chance against the prodigy of the genin!"

Neji smirked as he faced the scowling Zaku, "Just give up. You stand no chance and I do not wish to waste my time on the likes of you."

Zaku snickered, "Well aren't we the cocky one? I'll knock you off of your pedestal before long!"

Hayate looked back and forth between the two of them, "Well umm... Let's begin!"

Neji immediately made the hand signs to activate his Byakugan.

The otonin looked taken aback, but grinned and threw a kunai at Neji, which the Konoha prodigy dodged easily. "Ah," said Zaku, "I see what your ocular technique allows. Well then, dodge THIS! Zankuha! The Blast that Slices the Air!" Zaku fired two blasts of air at Neji from his palms, which were dodged once more.

"Ha," sneered the pride of the Hyuga, "You're far too slow to even hope to fight me!"

"Y'think so?" laughed Zaku. Then he roared and threw a continuing volley of "airblasts" at Neji, until his opponent was backed against the wall. He then pulled two more kunai from his holster, one in each hand.

"Feh!" Not this again! I can easily dodge any of your attacks! You're way too slow!" Neji groaned as Zaku threw the two kunai, "You never learn!"

Zaku laughed and cried, "Zankuha! The Blast that Slices the Air!" Neji gasped as he saw that the blasts were not aimed at him, but at the back ends of the two kunai!

Trapped against the wall, Neji had nowhere to go. "No! They're too fast to dodge!" He howled as the knives penetrated his shoulders, pinning him to the wall.

"Now," laughed Zaku, "What were you saying about my chances?" His laughed took on a cruel sound as he casually stepped towards the struggling genin. "THIS should make you a bit less cocky!" He aimed two more airblasts into Neji's eyes.

Neji screamed and struggled as blood poured from his now ruined eyes. "I give up! I give up! Just make it stop!"

Hayate raised his hand, "As his opponent has surrendered, Zaku Abumi is the winner! Medics, please hurry!"

Rock Lee looked stricken, "Neji lost? That is impossible! He was supposed to be the best!"

Uchiha Sasuke narrowed his eyes, "If the best of the best lost so easily, what chances do the rest of us have?" Then he chuckled as he read the scoreboard, "Well, well, well, the first of the teammate vs. teammate battles!"


End file.
